Conference

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February
082017

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Overview

Synthetic biology, in its broadest sense, is opening up a suite of possibilities for the design and redesign of biology to create new products and processes - advances in research and new toolkits could see the application of synthetic biology across a variety of industry sectors from pharmaceuticals to energy.

The UK is well positioned to play a leading role in the development of synthetic biology. It has world-leading research capabilities, supported by investment from the research councils in the creation of new research and innovation centres, and a small but growing SME community establishing connections with US leaders. At the same time, multinational corporations are becoming increasingly involved in the field, funding research within their own companies and in collaboration with academia and SMEs. However, challenges to the wider uptake of synthetic biology by industry remain. These include the clear need to demonstrate profitability in order to displace existing processes, concerns over public perception and difficulties around the language and definitions used in the field. Critically, these barriers risk meaning that the full potential of synthetic biology is not well understood by industry.

This conference will provide an honest and open appraisal of how industry is using synthetic biology, acknowledging successes and strengths but also looking at where there are weaknesses or potential risks. Speakers will include senior scientists from big industry and academia who will describe what challenges they believe synthetic biology can solve and what unmet needs it can address.

Attending this event

This event is intended for representatives from industry, academia and government who have an interest in synthetic biology. A programme will be published soon.

The conference is part of the Society's Transforming our future conference series, launched to address the major scientific and technical challenges of the next decade and beyond. Each conference will focus on one topic and will seek to cover key issues, including:

The current state of the key industry sectors involved

The position of the UK and how it can benefit from the technology

The future direction of research

The challenges faced in turning research into commercial success

The skills base needed to deliver major scientific advances

The wider social and economic impacts

The conferences are a key component of the Society’s five-year Science, Industry and Translation initiative which demonstrates our commitment to reintegrate science and industry at the Society and to promote science and its value by connecting academia, industry and government.

Professor Paul Freemont, Imperial College

Professor Paul Freemont is co-director and co-founder of the Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation (since 2009) and the National UK Innovation and Knowledge Centre for Synthetic Biology (SynbiCITE; since 2013) at Imperial College London. His research interests span from understanding the molecular mechanisms of human diseases to the development of synthetic biology platform technologies for biosensors design and pathway engineering and is author of over 200 scientific publications. He was a co-author of the British Government’s UK Synthetic Biology Roadmap and has been a passionate advocate for synthetic biology research and translation both in Europe and internationally. He is also part of the AHTEG technical expert group on synthetic biology for the United Nations Convention for Biological Diversity. He has co-founded two spin-out companies, sits on the scientific advisory boards of two other companies and is personally motivated to see the best academic research translated into real-life applications.

Professor Ben Davis FRS, The University of Oxford

Ben Davis got his B.A. (1993) and D.Phil. (1996) from the University of Oxford. During this time he learnt the beauty of carbohydrate science under the supervision of Professor George Fleet. He then spent 2 years as a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Professor Bryan Jones at the University of Toronto, exploring protein chemistry and biocatalysis.

In 1998 he returned to the U.K. to take up a lectureship at the University of Durham. In the autumn of 2001 he moved to the Dyson Perrins Laboratory, University of Oxford and received a fellowship at Pembroke College, Oxford. He was promoted to Full Professor in 2005.

Steve Bates, Chief Executive Officer, Bioindustry Association

Since his appointment as Chief Executive of the Bioindustry Association in 2012, Steve Bates has led major BIA campaigns for, amongst other things, improved access to finance, the refilling of the Biomedical Catalyst, anti-microbial resistance and the opportunity the sector presents to generalist long term investors.
Steve champions the adaptive pathway approach to the licensing of new drugs, the need for Early Access and is particularly proud of the working relationship the BIA has established with the UK’s leading medical research charities.

A founder member of United Life Sciences, a strategic partnership representing over 1000 life science and healthcare member companies across the UK and internationally, Steve attends the UK’s Ministerial Industry Strategy Group, and sits on The Royal Society's Science, Industry & Translation Committee.
Beyond the UK Steve is a member of EuropaBio’s Board and its National Association Council and is a founder member of the International Confederation of Biotech Associations.

An expert and regular commentator on the sector in the media and at industry-leading conferences Steve has worked both in biotech (as Senior Director at Genzyme UK and Ireland) and at the highest levels of UK government (as Special Advisor to John Reid, MP, during his time in Tony Blair’s government) for over 15 years.

09:00-09:05Welcome remarks

09:05-09:35New bio-based supply chains for medicines

Abstract

Plants are a rich source of unique molecules, including 25% of natural-product-derived drugs. However, the discovery, synthesis, and overall material supply chains for sourcing plant-based medicines remain ad hoc, biased, and tedious. While microbial biosynthesis presents compelling alternatives to traditional approaches based on extraction from natural plant hosts, many challenges exist in the reconstruction of plant specialized metabolic pathways in microbial hosts. We have developed approaches to address the challenges that arise in the reconstruction of complex plant biosynthetic pathways in microbial hosts. We have utilized these strategies to develop yeast production platforms for an important class of plant alkaloids, which include the medicinal opioids. The intersection of synthetic biology, genomics, and informatics will lead to transformative advances in how we make and discover essential medicines.

09:35-10:05The emerging synthetic biology industrial ecosystem

Dr Jason Kelly, Ginkgo Bioworks

Abstract

In the past several years an ecosystem of new companies has emerged in synthetic biology alongside substantial venture capital funding entering the sector. These companies are reducing the cost and shortening the timeline to deliver genetically engineered organisms. The falling cost of genetic engineering is opening new markets to biotechnology.

Dr Jason Kelly, Ginkgo Bioworks

Dr. Jason Kelly is the co-founder and CEO of Ginkgo Bioworks. Ginkgo designs microbes that produce flavor, fragrance, cosmetic, nutrition, and food ingredients. Ginkgo designs these microbes using their 40K sqft Boston facility, Bioworks2, that replaces by-hand lab work with robotic automation and software. The company recently raised over $150M in venture capital to expand their facilities and has partnerships with companies including Robertet, Cargill, and Ajinomoto. Ginkgo has received numerous awards including being recently selected #7 on CNBC's Disruptor 50 List of fast-growing companies. Prior to Ginkgo, Jason received B.S. degrees in Chemical Engineering and Biology and a PhD in Biological Engineering all from MIT.

10:05-11:05Panel discussion

Abstract

Dr Christina Smolke, Stanford University

Dr Jason Kelly, Ginkgo BioWorks

Sir Geoffrey Owen, London School of Economics

Haydn Parry, Oxitec

Dr Morten Sogaard, Pfizer

11:05-11:30

Coffee and networking

11:30-13:30

11:30-12:00Programming biology

Dr Andrew Phillips, Head of Bio Computation group at Microsoft

Abstract

The ability to program biology could enable fundamental breakthroughs in the detection and treatment of disease with high precision, the production of clean energy in a sustainable way, and the biofabrication of new medicines, fuels, and materials. In spite of this potential, there are still many challenges to overcome. First and foremost, programming biology is complex and error-prone, and we are at a point where powerful computer software could significantly accelerate further progress. This talk presents ongoing work to develop methods and software for programming biological systems. We present methods for programming molecular circuits made of DNA, and for characterising genetic parts that can be combined into devices for programming cell function. Just as software for programming digital computers transformed the technology landscape, software for programming biological systems could enable entirely new industries in biotechnology.

Dr Andrew Phillips, Head of Bio Computation group at Microsoft

Andrew Phillips leads the Biological Computation Group at Microsoft Research Cambridge, where he is developing methods and software for analysing and programming biological systems. Andrew received a postgraduate degree in Computer Science from the University of Cambridge, under a scholarship from the Barbados government. He pursued a PhD in the Department of Computing at Imperial College London, where he developed methods for specifying and implementing secure mobile applications. He joined Microsoft Research Cambridge in 2005, to conduct research at the intersection of programming language theory and biological modelling. In 2011 he received a Technology Review TR35 award for work on computer-assisted genetic engineering. The award recognises the world's leading innovators under the age of 35. His hobbies include snowboarding and kite-surfing, he is a black belt in Chinese kick-boxing and is a qualified ballroom dancing instructor.

12:00-12:30The energy challenge and synthetic biology

Abstract

This talk will describe the transition in the energy system towards lower carbon and renewable energy sources. We will look at some of the fundamental scientific challenges around this transition and where synthetic biology can play a role.

Jeremy Shears is Global Manager of the Biodomain group in Shell’s Innovation & New Energies technology division. He is responsible for leading Shell’s R&D in bioscience, advanced biofuels & hydrogen mobility at centres in UK, Netherlands, Germany and USA. He has a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Bristol. Jeremy joined Shell in 1986 and has held various commercial and technology management positions in the UK, Belgium, United Arab Emirates and Singapore, covering a variety of business areas including chemicals, fuels, lubricants and product safety.

12:30-13:30

Abstract

Dr Andrew Phillips, Microsoft

Dr Jeremy Shears, Shell Projects & Technology

Dr Neil Parry, Unilever

Dr Dass Chahal, Croda

Professor Joyce Tait, The University of Edinburgh

13:30-14:30

Lunch

14:30-16:45

14:30-15:00Towards a rational design and directed evolution platform for biosynthetic small molecules

Dr Edmund Graziani, Research Fellow, Pfizer

Abstract

Building a designer organism that can make privileged and drug-like small molecules under genetic control is the first step to building a system that can evolve small molecules under the selective pressure of a biological assay. Advances in metabolic engineering, the structural biology of natural product biosynthesis, and in single cell assay platform technologies suggest the possibility of using synthetic biology to create designer hosts for the production, screening, and directed evolution of small molecules. Nonetheless, there remain formidable conceptual and technical barriers to the realization of such an approach. The talk aims to identify specific challenges and gaps in our current understanding and experimental abilities, as a means of advancing further discussion and interest in the feasibility of exploring such a system.

Dr Edmund Graziani, Research Fellow, Pfizer

Edmund completed his B.Sc. (Hons) in Chemistry at the University of Toronto and a Ph.D. in marine natural products chemistry with Prof. Ray Andersen at the University of British Columbia. He then pursued post-doctoral studies in Prof. David Cane's lab at Brown University, followed by a biotechnology position with Prof. Julian Davies. He joined the Chemical Sciences department at Wyeth Research in 1999 where he worked on and led teams in oncology, inflammation, and neuroscience. In 2010, he joined Pfizer’s antibody drug conjugate (ADC) effort, and led a group conjugating novel payloads and linkers with the aim of advancing improved ADCs into clinical trials. In 2015 he also became the head of the synthetic biology and natural products group within Medicine Design at Pfizer.

15:00-15:30Reprogramming the genetic code

Professor Jason Chin, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology

Abstract

The information for synthesizing the molecules that allow organisms to survive and replicate is encoded in genomic DNA. In the cell, DNA is copied to messenger RNA, and triplet codons (64) in the messenger RNA are decoded - in the process of translation - to synthesize polymers of the natural 20 amino acids. This process (DNA RNA protein) describes the central dogma of molecular biology and is conserved in terrestrial life. We are interested in rewriting the central dogma to create organisms that synthesize proteins containing unnatural amino acids and polymers composed of monomer building blocks beyond the 20 natural amino acids. I will discuss our invention and synthetic evolution of new 'orthogonal' translational components (including ribosomes and aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases) to address the major challenges in re-writing the central dogma of biology. I will discuss the application of the approaches we have developed for incorporating unnatural amino acids into proteins and investigating and synthetically controlling diverse biological processes, with a particular emphasis on understanding the role of post-translational modifications.

Professor Jason Chin, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology

Jason Chin is a Programme Leader at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology (MRC-LMB), where he is also the Head of the Centre for Chemical & Synthetic Biology (CCSB). He is a Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at the University of Cambridge Department of Chemistry and a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. Jason was an undergraduate at Oxford, obtained his PhD as a Fulbright grantee from Yale, and was a Damon Runyon Fellow at Scripps. From July 2003 to early 2007 he was a tenure-track group leader at MRC-LMB. He became an EMBO Young Investigator in 2005 and a tenured group leader in 2007. He was awarded the Francis Crick Prize by the Royal Society in 2009 and the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Corday Morgan Prize in 2010. He was also awarded the European Molecular Biology Organization’s (EMBO) Gold Medal and elected to EMBO membership in 2010. He is the inaugural recipient (2011) of the Louis-Jeantet Young Investigator Career Award, and in 2013 was elected to the European Inventor Hall of Fame. In 2016 he was elected fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.